With his football team having lost two consecutive games to conclude the regular season, Lejeune coach Darryl Schwartz took a risk by giving his team off Monday rather than having them practice.

It was a calculated move by Schwartz, who hopes having a day off will help the seventh-seeded Devilpups (5-6) tonight when they play host to No. 12 Rosewood (3-7) in the first round of the NCHSAA 1-A playoffs.

“I gave them the day off because we are banged up and I wanted them to rest,” said Schwartz, adding fullback/linebacker Stephane DiCenso is questionable with an injured ankle. “I figure at this stage of the game, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday is plenty of time to prepare for a team we’ve played.”

Giving his team time off early in the week perhaps is a good move by Schwartz, given Lejeune has been hampered with injuries, although the Devilpups’ third-year coach said none of the injuries was serious.

It may also be beneficial to allow Lejeune players to step away from football after the Devilpups closed out the regular season with a 51-6 home loss to Southwest and a 33-12 loss at Dixon last week.

Lejeune finished third in the Coastal Plains Conference.

“They better (be ready to play tonight),” Schwartz said. “If they don’t, that would be a losing attitude.”

The good news for the Devilpups is that they play a team they beat handily already this season.

Lejeune defeated the Eagles 41-15 on the road Sept. 14. It was a game that saw the Devilpups’ Jamaz Richardson rush for 338 yards and score 5 touchdowns.

Rosewood, which is coming off a 43-41 win over Princeton last week, ended fourth in the Carolina Conference.

“I’ve looked at the film and nothing has changed,” Schwartz said of Rosewood. “We will throw in new wrinkles, but it looks like their defense still runs a five-(man) front and their offense is the same with them running an option with a jet sweep.”

If the Devilpups win, it will mark the second consecutive season they have opened the playoffs with a home victory. Playing a postseason game at home means something to Schwartz.

“I’m ecstatic,” Schwartz said. “We’ve come so far. The program is growing and hopefully from this we will get more people come out next year.”

No. 16 Croatan (6-4) at No. 1 Northside (11-0)

Northside and Croatan might as well feel as if they are still in East Central 2-A Conference play as the Monarchs host the Cougars in the first round of the 2-AA playoffs.

The Monarchs beat the Cougars 41-13 on Sept. 28.

Northside finished the regular season undefeated and won the ECC for the fourth time in program history with a 21-14 victory over East Duplin last week.